Kit, Cyberhobby 6670, German 3t 4x2 Truck

6670, German 3t 4x2 Truck Smart Kit. 1/35th-scale styrene/multimedia construction kit. Contains 231 styrene parts (including seven clear), one etched brass fret, one set of self-adhesive window masks, six water-slide decal/markings schemes and eight pages of instructions in 13 steps.

Introduction.

The Opel Blitz 3-ton truck was a mainstay of the German Wehrmachts supply and support units throughout the Second World War. It was seen in dozens of sub-variants and also came in either a four- or two-wheel-drive version. Ever the masters of expedience, German soldiers also mounted light weapons on the load-bed, to include the various 2cm FlaK guns. Late war versions replaced the metal cab with a press-board type, and the Blitz was also seen powered by wood-gas. This variety makes for an almost endless amount of modeling subjects. And, this does not even count the semi-tracked, armored and un-armored Maultier (Mule) series, all based on the Blitz.

Indeed, the Blitz has been well-represented in styrene in the major scales, from 1/72nd and 1/76th, to 1/48th and 1/35th-scales. In the latter scale, there is the venerable (and still rather nice, if you loose the rubber tires) Italeri kit, in several versions, as well as the more recent Tamiya offering.

Never ones to miss out on an opportunity, DML and Cyberhobby have just released the first of what I can only assume will be an ever-expanding stable of Blitzen, in 1/35th-scale. Curiously, just as Italeri and Tamiya have done, this kit represents the S-Typ with rear wheel drive only. So, why release this kit, when there are already options available to the modeler? To answer the question for your self, read on.

Wheels.

The tires are conventionally-molded as two halves with the separate wheel hub being trapped between them. The wheel hubs are of the pattern that had six lighting holes. Two-part brake hubs are also given and the rear dual wheels have a separate outer hub. Because of the sprue layout, two spare tires are provided, so one can be placed in its rack and the other can be used as cargo, or battlefield debris in a diorama. None of the tires are provided with filler valves, but these can easily be added using stretched sprue.

Chassis Frame.

The main frame is a single part, which gets a pair of separate tow hooks, front and rear. At the far rear end, a cross-brace is added and on that is fitted a three-part trailer hitch. Up front, near the tow hooks, a horn is added and there are also details that represent rivets, body panel stampings and cooling slits. On the port side of the frame, a two-part tool box is fitted, while on the opposite side, a four part rack holds a jerry can composed of four styrene and one etched brass parts. There are three complete styrene jerry cans included, but only one etched brass insert is given so only one jerry can can be completely assembled. A two-part fuel tank fits cross-wise on the frame, below the cab and the spare tire is also mounted further aft.

Suspension System

The suspension system consists of leaf-spring bundles, with a pair forward and another pair aft. The aft set is the single-bundle type and they each have a separate bracket to detail them. Up front, the steering linkages consist of three parts for better detail definition. These parts are not engineered to be steerable, but with some work, the front wheels can be fixed into various attitudes.

Engine and Drive Train.

The engine is broken down into 11 parts and there are three more for the radiator, its fan shroud and mounting plate. A separate exhaust pipe and muffler assembly is also given, but its end will have to be drilled out for the proper appearance. A single-piece drive shaft runs from the transmission to the rear axle, which itself is composed of two parts.

Cab.

It is in the cab that this kit really pulls out the stops. The engine compartment (bonnet) is based on a delicate internal skeleton, produced by a slide-mold. Onto this is fitted the right- and left-side access panels, which can be depicted opened or closed. Each panel has two separate T-shaped closure clasps, and their delicate cooling slots are see-through for maximum detail fidelity. The radiator grill is a separate part and its slits are completely opened up, so that the provided radiator can be seen behind them. Two etched brass parts are given with the Opel Blitz legend included; they are fixed to the grill, but there are no locations given for them. A separate hood ornament is given as is a three-part Tarnscheinwerfer-Notek black-out head-lamp. A pair of separate windshield-wipers are also given to complete the area.

This entire bonnet assembly is fitted to a front bumper/wheel-well/fender unit, which also comprises the cockpit floor; the latter has fine panel and rib details molded in place. Each fender is fitted with a three-part head-lamp unit, which has black-out slits and separate clear styrene inserts for the slit openings; conventional head-lamp lenses are not included. Width indicator stems are also given for each side. The port side mounts a shovel, which includes two-part brackets and clamps; the opposite side sees a pick fitted in similar fashion. An axe is included, but I could not find its location in the instructions. Down low on the bumper, a separate part for the registration number plate is then fitted.

The running boards are separate parts, with separate mounting brackets. They feature non-skid strips on their upper surfaces, and the one on the starboard side is fitted with a three-part vehicle jack. The back wall of the cab is separate and in the center it receives a separate clear panel for the rear window; there are more detail parts added as well. The seats are one large piece, with restrained wrinkle texture; two parts are added to help mount it to the cab floor. The front end of the cockpit is a separate, well-detailed part. It includes the opened glove compartment and various switches, button and dial faces molded in place on the instrument panel. Dial faces are given as decals, for a refined look. All of the drivers controls are separate. They include shift lever, parking brake lever, gas, brake and clutch pedals and steering wheel/column parts. References indicate that there ought to be a fire extinguisher and its rack on the passengers side; this is not given.

The roof panel is separate and includes the frame for the wind-shield glass. The latter is a separate clear part. Two different towed-load triangles are provided for the front edge of the roof panel. One is erected to indicate a towed load, the other lays down to indicate no load is being hauled. Neither is shown installed in the instructions. The doors are both separate parts and they can be posed opened or closed. They feature separate inner panels, for proper dimension and detail; because of this there are no ejector pin marks to worry about. The outside door-opening handles are separate, as are the ones on the inside. Furthermore, the crank handles for opening and closing the windows are also separate. Clear parts for the side windows are also given, while pre-cut self-adhesive masking material id provided to ease the painting process. A multi-part search-light with a clear lens is given, as is a separate drivers side-view mirror.

Cargo Bed.

This wooden cargo bed has solid front, side and rear sections, with spaced boards on the upper segments. There is a second rear panel without the spaced boards as an option; this is called-out in the instructions but not shown with an illustration. The side and rear panels can be shown erected or dropped. Three panels are provided to fit across the bed for passenger seats. Numerous separate detail parts are added to the panels, to include plates, handles and other hardware. The deck panel is separate and is detailed on both of its faces (as are all the other load-bed panels). A separate part represents the four-part canvas foul weather cover frames, bundled up and stowed. No separate frames for the erected position are given and there is no canvas tarp provided, either in the erected or stowed configuration.

It should be noted that all of these panels are completely devoid of ejector pin marks and that they are not burdened with out-of-scale wood grain details.

The forward-most body panel, which does not fold down, is fitted with W-shaped mounting brackets for connection to the chassis frame. Six more separate parts (two are V-shaped, two are W-shaped and two are L-shaped) are then fitted to attach the deck panel to the chassis frame. The three-part left- and right-side wheel wells are now fitted, along with another pair of multi-part tool boxes, one on each side behind the wheel wells. Optional tail-lamp and registration plate configurations are also given.

Molding, Fit and Engineering.

I have already commented on the lack of visible ejector pin marks; there was no parts shrinkage, no flash, and the mold parting lines are delicate and easily cleaned-up. Detail is crisp overall, and parts break-down allows for a high level of detail, without complex assemblies. I am not a fan of etched brass inserts for the jerry cans and will replace the one given with styrene sheet.

Accuracy and Details.

The front end accurately represents the S-Typ with the shorter bonnet; this is a good way to identify the 2-wheel drive version if the drive train is not seen. There should be a fire extinguisher and bracket in the cockpit; this should be easy to source from a well-stocked spares bin. I cannot comment on scale accuracy since I have no reliable drawings to compare the kit to. Suffice to say, the kit looks to be properly detailed and proportioned.

Instructions.

These are in DMLs typical line-drawing style, and since there are not a huge number of parts, they are relatively brief. At least two items included in the kit are overlooked in the instructions: the axe and the towed load triangle. Colors are keyed to Testors Model Master and Gunze paints.

Decals and Markings Information.

As usual, DML has contracted Italys Cartograf to produce the water-slide decals. They are crisply-printed with closely-cropped, matte carrier film. Registration is not an issue, since all designs are one color. Note that the registration plates consist of a black-bordered white panel, upon which separate letters and numbers are to be laid. Markings for six trucks are provided as follows:

1.SS-Panzer-Grenadier-Division, LSSAH, Kharkov 1943.
3.SS-Division (Mot.) Totenkopf, Ostfront 1941-42.
4.SS-Polizei-Division, Ostfront 1944.
2.Panzer-Division, Ostfront 1943.
Two different vehicles from unidentified units, both on the Ostfront in 1941.

These trucks are painted in a wide variety of schemes, based either on Dunkelgrau or Dunkelgelb. Winter whitewash is seen on three of them. The markings are quite generic and each registration plate letter/number sequence must be assembled by the modeler. There are only WH (Heer) and SS prefixes, so if the modeler wants a Luftwaffe (WL) or Kriegsmarine (WM) truck, some searching of the spares bin will be in order.

Conclusion.

This latest issue of the Opel Blitz is more refined than what has come before. In particular, the cab interior is more complete particularly regarding the doors. The two-position engine compartment covers have cooling slots that are open all the way through and there are separate cover stays for when they are closed. None of the visible surfaces of the finished kit have any knock-out pin marks. The included masking material is pre-cut and decals are provided for the instrument panel dial faces.

In essence then, and despite previous releases, this kit can indeed be considered a useful choice for the marketplace. What this bodes for the future, especially regarding variants, only time will tell.

- Frank V. De Sisto